


Arranged Marriage

by erasedjanna



Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Arranged Marriage, F/M, Marriage, Series
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-07-24
Updated: 2012-11-29
Packaged: 2017-11-10 16:04:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/468123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/erasedjanna/pseuds/erasedjanna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Renesmee and Alec are forced to get married but how will they get along with each other?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Preface

**Author's Note:**

> I started this fic almost over two years ago and wrote a preface and the first chapter and then I completely left it unfinished. Now, I want to finish this fic because Alec/Renesmee pairing is one of my OTPs and I want to write and finish this fic. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this fic and forgive me any stupid (grammar) mistakes. Thank you!

_ Preface _

 

The gloomy steps echoed in the silent hall. Young girl’s beautiful face had twisted into a dissatisfied expression and she hissed through her teeth, pressing her hands into fists. How could they decide something like that? How could they decide behind her back?

The steps echoed harshly now, the wooden door slammed against the stony wall. This was none of her business but it was her brother’s who she loved and cared about. He would never approve this kind of antic but their master had a skill for persuasion.

Her hands grabbed the doorknobs and pulled the doors open. The air draught waved the cloak that covered the little blonde girl, the gazes behind the doors turned to her. Three men in their chairs stopped talking and two men beside the chairs lifted their gazes up.

“No”, the girl said, walking closer to them, “you won’t do it.”

The man, who sat in the middle, stood up and smiled pleasantly. “Jane, you must have heard?”

“Of course I have! And I don’t agree with you.”

The girl stopped in front of her master and locked her gaze to his face. She repeated her words once more and asked them to forget this stupid idea. It wouldn’t happen.

“Does your brother know?” the man asked.

“No but if he did, he would agree with me.”

The smile on the man’s face weakened, he took a step closer the girl. “But Jane, don’t you understand? This is a big chance for combining two families. We will get new skills for our use, we will become greater.”

The girl pouted and let disgust flame in her eyes. “And that is sure. They already agreed.”

The girl took a step backwards and hissed. They had approved? They had approved to let the girl marry her brother? They had agreed to combine the families?

“Jane”, the man beside the girl’s master said, “Aro isn’t lying. The Cullens really agreed. So this means that…”

“…Renesmee will be Alec’s wife.”


	2. Rings Made of Gold

Chapter 1

 

_Renesmee's PoV_

__“What?”

My disbelieving and shocked cry filled my room, echoed in the walls. I stared at my mother and Aunt Alice confused, they had told me something very odd. It had made me feel terrible and I hoped that it was just a joke. It couldn’t be possible! But I had the feeling that it was.

“I don’t… I must have heard wrong”, I whispered my voice disappearing. ”You didn’t tell me that I, Renesmee Carlie Cullen, will marry Alec of the Volturi, right? You didn’t say so!”  
Mom and Alice glanced at each other and didn’t look surprised. “Nessie, the Volturi made a proposal. We thought about it with the whole family-“  
“With the whole family…”, I mumbled as I crossed my arms on my chest. And when hadn’t I been part of the family?  
“Well, almost then. But we thought about their proposal and stated that it wouldn’t cause any harm. Aro promised that you don’t have to move but he hoped that you would live in Italy too.”

Mom talked like she had planned my whole future with Aro, the leader of the Volturi. It made me angry, tore me into pieces from inside. My heart bounced eagerly and shocked of the news in my chest and the need to shout at my whole family grew bigger and bigger. An arranged marriage… No!

“Nessie”, Alice said her voice peaceful, tingling, “you will understand that this is an important decision.” She floated along the floor towards me and intertwined her other hand around me. “You will understand that we will benefit of this. And we understand that you’re are scared but Alec will treat you well. Maybe you will like each other.”

I pouted without saying a word. Oh, we would like each other? Alice couldn’t be so sure about that or Alec’s behavior. She couldn’t see me in her visions and not even Alec’s future so far if I was part of it. If I was part of his life. But I didn’t want to be a wife to a vampire who drank human blood and killed people and wouldn’t change his diet. I was sure he wouldn’t if I even asked.

Our marriage was already doomed.

“Or maybe he’ll kill me…”, I mumbled as I turned my back on them and stepped towards my bed. I sat on it and grabbed a pillow to hug it. How could mom do this to me? Didn’t she know what I had always dreamed about? Maybe she did but didn’t care.

“Oh, don’t be silly, darling”, mom said, walking to me and sitting on my bed. I didn’t look at her, I felt betrayed. “You haven’t even met him since the day they arrived to-“

“To destroy me”, I said finishing her sentence. “I remember that, Alec tried to attack us with his sister and you know what? He could try it again. He could try to hurt me. Why can’t you see that?”

Mom hugged me tightly while I tried to get away from her. I failed. “Because I trust him. Aro said he has talked with Alec who promised to treat you as well as possible and I think he will keep his promise. But if he doesn’t, Aro will do something about it.”

I pushed mom away and looked at her, feeling myself more confused. “Aro? So, you won’t do anything if he hurts me? You’ll just watch when he keeps me blind and deaf, out of your life?” I felt my own words harsh and depressing, cold, but I couldn’t imagine the situation I had described in my mind. If that kind of situation came, I would feel terrified and incredible pain but not because of him. I would feel so because of my whole family.

“I know you’re shocked and you need to think before accepting this but you don’t have to create such images.” Mom sighed and smiled warmly. “You don’t have to worry about anything, just concentrate on your wedding. Alice has got very beautiful wedding dresses for you and you get to pick one to be your wedding dress. And you also get to choose your maid of honour. What do you say?”

I stared at her and lifted my gaze to Alice who smiled pleasantly. She looked so excited and I knew she was ready to bring the dresses in front of my eyes. But I didn’t want to choose my dress or my bridesmaid. I didn’t want to be part of the wedding at all.

“I say this is crazy and unbelievable.” I stood up feeling myself furious and noticed my eyes were watering. I fought against the tears which were stronger than me and flowed to my cheeks by force. I couldn’t do anything but cry and keep my eyes closed because I didn’t want to face my mom or aunt with tears in my eyes. But I wanted to speak my mind and tell them how bad I felt though they probably saw it. “And…”, I sniffed quietly, “I… I won’t marry him.” My voice was surprisingly strong, it amazed me. “I won’t allow you to decide these kinds of things behind my back! I’m the one getting married, not you or Aunt Alice or Aunt Rosalie or Grandma Esme! You should have asked my opinion before deciding anything!”

“Renesmee, we-“

“I don’t want to hear! The only thing I want to hear is that the wedding is cancelled.”

I took quick steps towards the door while talking and when I had said enough I escaped. I left my room and ran down the stairs towards the front door which was locked. My hands grabbed the keys from the little table beside the wall and unlocked the door. I ran out and heard sand rasp under my feet but as I headed to the woods I felt damp grass instead. It felt cool and smooth, faithless. My feet couldn’t handle its slipperiness and I fell down hitting my head on the ground. The pain attacked me quickly and raced through my body with no sign of ease but I didn’t care.

_If only it could have hurt more._

 

_Alec's PoV_

__Jane stared at me waiting, her gaze so eager and angry. She hissed through her teeth and waited me to response to her words which sounded ridiculous in my mind. A marriage with the daughter of Edward Cullen? I wasn’t in the mood for jokes.

“Sister, try that later. I can’t understand your sick joke right now.”

“It’s not a joke! It is real! Aro and the Cullens decided that you will marry Renesmee Cullen so she will become Mrs. Alec of the Volturi. Hilarious!” she shouted furiously as she crossed her arms. Jane didn’t look at me but I saw that the look in her eyes was angrier than before and it made me wonder. She was a really good actor or she was serious. I wished she was just acting. “Do you understand, brother?” She turned to look at me, her dark red eyes hungry. “You are going to marry the little half-breed and just some years ago we were going to destroy her!” Jane stared straight into my eyes and studied my blank face for a moment before she snarled frustrated. “Can’t you understand what I am saying?”

I didn’t get a chance to response when my room’s door suddenly opened. Felix stood there with a pleasant smile on his face, he told us Aro wanted to meet me. Jane snarled again and looked at Felix with an evil look as I took small steps towards him. They switched wordless messages but I didn’t bother to ask anything. My mind was filled with my sister’s words which didn’t please me. If she had told me the truth, what on earth would I do? A marriage with Renesmee Cullen sounded so wrong, I couldn’t even imagine it. Jane must have been joking.

As I made my way to the hall I noticed the other vampires were looking at me a compassionate look on their faces. I couldn’t understand why they were looking at me like that, I couldn’t find any reason but… But the one sister had told me. I pressed my hands into fists and wished it was just a stupid sick joke to scare the hell out of me. But as I entered the hall I met Aro’s cheerful smile and all the compassionately amused gazes. Shit.

“Alec, I have very exciting and important news to tell.” Aro sounded happy and he looked like he couldn’t wait to tell me. He was like a five-year-old waiting for Christmas gifts. “Could everyone except Jane, Marcus, Caius, Demetri and Felix leave this room?”

I heard steps and saw my sister and Felix enter the hall. They walked past me towards Aro and Marcus and Caius and stopped beside them. My sister didn’t smile but Felix looked like he had fun. So much fun.

“What is it?” I asked.

“What would you say if I told you that you will go to Forks, Washington?”

My body stiffened. “What is this about?”

“Well”, Aro moved slowly towards me Demetri behind him, “I think you will understand when you see these.” They stopped right in front of me and Demetri opened a little wooden box, revealing two shiny rings made of gold. They got my attention, my eyes just stared at them and I cursed in my mind. What the hell was Aro thinking? Had he gone mad? “Alec? A marriage with Renesmee Cullen. What do you say?”

I took a step backwards and shook my head. He was insane. “No”, I said, “I won’t do it. I won’t marry her.”  
“Remember what I said?” my sister exclaimed quickly, we all looked at her. “I told you Alec wouldn’t agree but you didn’t listen to me. You can’t force him to do it. You can’t!”

“Jane, my dear, calm down. I heard what you said and now I heard what your brother said. It seems we have to break our agreement with the Cullens.” Aro looked at Demetri who shut the box, they turned their backs on me. “They were already so enthusiastic and Alice promised to organize the wedding. I think she already started planning, she seemed to be very excited.” Aro sat on his chair and looked at me again, his eyes gleaming of something odd and hidden. “We would have got to use her talent but-“

What? “Wait a minute, Aro. What did you say?” I looked at him and heard my sister snarl. Had he said we would have got to use the Cullens’ powers if I had agreed to marry that Cullen girl?

“You heard right, Alec”, Caius said. “If you go to Forks and marry that girl, we will get to use their powers. We can ask them to come here and do something for us. Do you understand?” I nodded once. “Good. Aro didn’t come up with this idea for nothing. He-“

“And I”, Aro said and Caius went silent, “am sorry for choosing you to do it. I didn’t think you at first because you’re so young. I thought of Felix but I think she wouldn’t like him, he is a little bit too old. And Demetri”, Aro glanced at the vampire close to him, “we need him for ourselves and someone had something against choosing him. But then I thought of you again and wondered. You have a great skill, very powerful and important to us but we also have Jane so I thought you would be perfect. And now I think you aren’t too young at all. Renesmee is as old as you are.”

I could only sigh in my mind and feel myself tricked. They were trying to change my mind but I wouldn’t do it. They could have forced me to marry Renesmee and I wondered why they didn’t do so. Aro was my master and he could have ordered me to anything he wanted, even if I didn’t want to. But now he seemed to believe in the power of his words.

“How would I profit from it?” I asked curiously. Jane hissed loudly but we acted like we didn’t hear her.

“You would get to live in Forks for a while and have a nice life with your lovely wife”, Felix answered and uttered a laughter. Aro’s lips curved to a childish smile and I sighed frustrated in my mind.

“Well”, Aro leaned forward, “it depends on what you want. What do you desire, Alec? What do you want most?”

What did I want most? I didn’t want to marry a girl I didn’t know but I was sure that was one of the desires Aro wouldn’t fulfill. So, what else did I want? I didn’t know.

“I let you think”, Aro said suddenly with a hoping tone. “Think very carefully and let me know if you have changed your mind. Remember, we could be more victorious and more powerful.” He smiled and glanced at Jane who ran across the hall to the enormous doors her eyes glowing of anger and dissatisfaction. “What a wonderful creature, your sister”, he laughed, “but go now, Alec, and think. Don’t care of your sister, she will understand.”

I nodded but didn’t agree. Jane would never understand. And I would never marry the Cullen girl.

_Never._

But at the time I was so wrong.


	3. Eyes Laid On Her

Chapter 2

 

_Renesmee's PoV_

I sighed and couldn't concentrate on what Alice was chattering about. Her words flew towards me but I ignored them as I kept myself together. All I could see was white dresses on my bed and in front of my wardrobe, all the beautiful colors side by side. There was baby pink and baby blue, cream white and pure white, light purple and a hint of silver. Some of the dresses had thin braces and some of them had a little bit lace bordering the neckline. All of them looked amazing and so beautiful but I couldn't enjoy or feel the excitement of choosing the dress. I could only feel bitterness.

"Nessie, are you even listening to me?" Alice's voice dragged me out of the mist surrounding me and I met her bright look. She huffed and shook her head. "Of course you aren't! What is it? Is there something wrong with the dresses? Don't you like any of them?"

"No, they're beautiful", I said truthfully, trying to curve my lips into a smile. "I just…", it was better to lie, "…I just can't decide. They all look so wonderful. I want all of them!" I sounded excited which was a lie. A miserable feeling was strangling my heart.

"Well, then you have to try them on!" Alice smiled widely and danced towards the bed to bring a dress, which had no braces or lace, to me. It was cream white with a corset top and an impressive, almost ankle long skirt. "Try this! I'm sure you'll love it! It will look gorgeous on you, trust me."

She gave me the dress and left the room to give me some space and peace. It was so good to be alone, so good to let the smile fade away and let the tears come. Warm and salty teardrops flowed along my cheeks, making my face wet. Two or three drops made their way down my neck as I placed the dress on my bed and took my shirt off. It swept the tears away and I controlled myself again. No tears, no crying now.

"Just the dress", I whispered.

A few moments later I stood in front of the mirror, studying the young girl it reflected. She was wearing the most beautiful dress ever but her eyes looked sad and uncomfortable, they were almost watering. She tried to smile happily and look like a bride who was going to marry the love of her life. But she couldn't. I couldn't. The girl of the mirror was forced to marry a vampire she didn't even know.

"Stupid wedding", I murmured as I took a few steps backwards. I had to admit I looked beautiful in the dress. It was gorgeous, like made for me. It had a hint of light purple on the waist and I liked it though I didn't want to. I didn't want to like anything that had something to do with the wedding.

The door opened suddenly and Alice walked in with a pleasant smile on her face. She didn't seem to care about my wet face or the miserable glow in my eyes, she looked amazed. Alice intertwined her arms around me and looked at me through the mirror.

"I know you are waiting for me to say that you look amazing", she whispered, "but I think I should comfort you instead." Her smile disappeared, she looked understanding. "We all know you don't want this but it's important. Bella cares about you very much and doesn't want to hurt you."

"But she is hurting me", I mumbled. "And dad too. How could he let mom do this?"

"He was against this but he changed his mind."

I sniffed and laughed gloomy. "Mom always gets what she wants. Dad just wants to please her. He gives her what she wants."

"Well, that is true but Edward didn't change his mind because he wanted to please Bella."

I shook my head and didn't believe her. I knew dad. He would do anything to please mom. Bring the moon and the stars from the sky to her if she wanted.

"Maybe I get used to it. Maybe I get used to Alec and the fact that I'm married to him. But now I can't accept that we are getting married in… how many weeks, Alice? I don't even know when my wedding day is!"

Something exploded inside me and made me furious. I felt frustrated and needed to take the dress off. I didn't want to see myself in it anymore. Not until the doom day.

"Your wedding day is on August 8th", Alice told me, I froze. August 8th? "I know it's soon but-"

"Are you serious? You can't be! I'll be Mrs. Alec of the Volturi in a week?"

It was too much for me, I couldn't keep myself together. I fell to the floor and collapsed. It was hard to breathe, I felt the shock going through my body. It made me tremble and tried to make me cry but I didn't allow any tears to escape. I fought back and covered my face with my hands as I pressed my lips together tightly. I blinked fast and felt Alice's light touch on my shoulder, she spoke in a low, comfortable voice.

"Nessie, I know it's very soon but you have to understand. We didn't want you to think this too much and that's why we decided-"

"You decided to lie and hide the truth from me. I understand." My voice was bitter. "You didn't want to give me too much time to enjoy my freedom. Don't try to deny it, Alice." I looked straight into her golden eyes, still blinking, placing my hands on my lap. "You didn't think of me when you decided that I will marry Alec. You thought of the benefit of our marriage. Right? The Volturi will be pleasant towards us when Alec and I get married."

"Well", Alice said with a peaceful tone, "Bella told you that we will benefit of your marriage but I have to say that you're wrong. We thought of you too. We want you to have a good husband and-"

"Yeah and Alec is one, right?"

Alice sighed. "And a life full of surprises."

She smiled nicely and entwined her arms around me. We both sat on the floor and her head leaned against mine. I started to feel better, bitterness was fading away, escaping my body. But I still couldn't be relieved or smile like before. I wanted to be free of all the bad feelings but I knew I couldn't. I would be a prisoner of bitterness, hopelessness and sorrow.

"I will support and help you, Nessie. I won't leave you alone with this." Alice's words sounded promising and secure and I decided to trust her.

"Thank you, Alice", I said quietly, whispering, "and sorry."

"Don't apologize. We all should understand your feelings and let you be angry at us." Alice stood up and helped me on my feet, turning me to look in the mirror. "You will be the most beautiful bride I have ever seen. Forget Alec and the Volturi for a while."

I nodded and smiled poorly, knowing I couldn't forget even if I wanted to. I was getting married in six days and I hadn't met my husband-to-be. That's why I couldn't sweep it away.

 

_Alec's PoV_

"Why did you do it?"

Jane threw an old painting to the floor and hissed through her teeth. She was furious, angry and displeased. I could sense that she hated me and our masters right now and I knew she wouldn't calm down for several moments. It was better to let her rage.

"Why on earth did you do it? Have you gone mad? Have you lost your mind?"

"I don't want it, sister. I thought you would know me better."

"Know you better?" Jane looked like she could throw me out of the window right away. Her eyes were in fire. "The brother I know wouldn't have agreed! He would have fought! And you gave up and agreed to marry Renesmee Cullen." She started to piss me off with her anger and unpleasantness.

"I said I didn't want it", I repeated my words. "Didn't you hear?"

"Yes, I heard, brother", Jane hissed, "but why did you agree then? Why do you have to be Aro's precious boy who does whatever he wants? You didn't have to say yes."

"Well, I didn't say yes if I remember right. I didn't promise anything, Aro just thought I agreed. He called me, I went to the hall and he smiled pleasantly and said that I did the right thing. I didn't know what he was talking about but then I realized and felt so bitter. I didn't decide anything."

"So he forced you?" Jane asked. "Why didn't you speak your own mind? God, you're a fool!"

I didn't try to stop her when she walked out of my room and shut the door with force. I had known this, I had known she would be mad at me because I had been such a stupid and bad brother. Well, I had to admit that I was angry at myself because I hadn't said anything. I had been quiet and struggled inside my mind, cursed and felt so stupid and fooled. Nobody said 'no' to Aro but my sister was an exception. She respected him but she also said what she thought and Aro didn't mind. She was his pet, everybody knew it.

I didn't get to be alone, someone knocked on the door. It was opened without my permission and Felix stepped inside, a smile on his face. I almost snarled again, I didn't need his sarcasm and jokes right now.

"What is it?"

"Aro wants you to know that you will be leaving Italy tonight."

I was astonished. "Tonight? Why?"

"He wants you to meet your fiancée", Felix told me. "He said the Cullens welcome you."

I couldn't believe it. The Cullens hated us. "Even the girl?"

"Yes. Aro said she is waiting for you. I think you're going to get lucky." Felix winked, smiling, and I almost hit him with my elbow. This wasn't funny at all. "Come on, Alec, relax! You will marry her, then you will enjoy your party and when the night comes-"

"Aro should have picked you to marry her. You seem to be so excited and impatient."

Felix laughed. "Alec, you have to relax and be more open minded. She is just a girl."

"Half-vampire, half-human. Is she really waiting for me?" That sounded very weird but possible. She was a teenage girl imagining an amazing life with me in her pink imaginary world. Wonderful.

"Why wouldn't she be? She knows she will meet you in 24 hours. She must be very anxious."

I didn't bother to disagree or ask Felix to leave. I had no choice but to marry Renesmee Cullen and jump into her world. Would she smile and run into my arms after seeing me? Would she expect me to hug her, maybe give a kiss? No.

I wouldn't kiss her until we would be walking down the aisle.

~

The sky was dark, full of gray clouds. The weather was rainy as I had thought and it described my mood. I wasn't ready to meet this girl who was waiting for me. I wasn't ready to see her happy face or feel her body against me when she would hug me. Why had I kept my mouth shut? Where was the brother Jane had known for many centuries?

Our car stopped and I saw Felix smile beside me. I couldn't understand why Aro had wanted to send him with me. Maybe he had thought Felix might make me feel comfortable and relaxed? Well, if he had, he was so wrong. Felix only made me feel worse and annoyed in this situation. I was supposed to get out of the car and meet my wife-to-be in front of the Cullens. I was wondering what they were expecting me to do. Did they expect to see me smiling widely? I hoped they didn't because I wouldn't do so.

"Are you ready?" Felix asked me before opening the door. Some cool air flew into the car.

"Yes, I am ready to kill you because you brought me here", I answered and he laughed like I had told a joke.

"Hey, you agreed to do this", he reminded me as he recognized I wasn't in the mood for his amusement. "You can't go back to Aro and say: 'Hey, I won't do it. Send someone else to marry her'. He wouldn't be pleased." Felix sounded surprisingly caring and serious, he wasn't even smiling. And that was something I called weird. But it didn't last too long. "Don't worry about anything, you will be just fine. Now, it's show time."

Felix laughed as he kicked me out of the car to the wet front yard. It had started to rain very hard, raindrops whipped me with the angry wind and it felt soothing to me. I would rather stand in the pouring rain and listen to the thunder than do what I had to. I would rather get hit by a lightning (although it couldn't harm me) than step into the building ahead of us. But as Felix had said, I had no choice. Aro had tricked me into this and I couldn't back off anymore. I was destined to meet Renesmee, my future wife, and her whole family just within a few little moments.

Those little moments passed too quickly and too soon I was standing in the hallway of the house, greeting the Cullens one by one. Carlisle and Esme welcomed me with warmth that was unfamiliar to me and Bella and Alice smiled like they had waited for this moment for days. They probably had. Rosalie, the one that seemed somehow cold, stayed in the background while the three other vampires, Jasper, Emmett and Edward, nodded towards me. The tallest of them had a familiar, amused smile on his face. So Felix wasn't alone, someone else was also quite amused of the situation I was pushed in.

"It's a pleasure that Aro let you leave Italy already", Esme told me as she guided me and Felix to the living room which was bright despite the rain and dark clouds in the sky. "You will have time to get to know Renesmee."

"Yes", I sighed as the Cullens and Felix sat down. "What a great opportunity."

"Alec is quite joyful of that", Felix said, teasing, and I wanted to punch him. "But where is she? Alec is so eager to meet her." Actually, no. I didn't want to punch him. I wanted to rip his head off.

"Renesmee is upstairs", Alice answered from the couch, not looking at Felix but me. "She said she didn't want to welcome you right away but I think she is very eager to meet you, too. I can go get her."

"Do that, Alice", Bella said her voice enthusiastic.

She gave Alice a little secret smile from beside her and the short haired, thin vampire disappeared in seconds. That made me froze right there, my gaze trying to burn a hole into the couch, and everybody turned to look at me with curious eyes. Felix whispered something about relaxing but the waiting looks, which were laid on me, didn't give me any space to do so. I was trapped under pressure, waiting for Alice's excited words to deepen it. And then I heard it, her delightful voice, coming right from behind me.

"She's coming downstairs!"

Her voice made me turn around and face the stairs in the corridor. I could hear light and slow steps just above us, making their way towards the staircase that creaked silently as my wife-to-be stepped on the first step. I caught a whiff of a sweet and warm scent and moved closer to the doorway as I heard the steps stop. It was quiet for a little while but then the stairway creaked again, and I laid my eyes on my fiancée.


	4. Raindrops In the Wind

Chapter 3

 

_Renesmee’s PoV_

The window was cold against the palm of my hand. Raindrops flowed down the window glass and a lightning lit up the sky that was filled with dark gray clouds. My mind was filled with grayness, too, and I couldn’t overcome the feeling of loneliness that squirmed inside my chest and stomach. It felt like I had eaten something bad, like there were restless waves inside me.

A deep sigh escaped my lips and I gazed at the car parked in the front yard. I had seen two vampires come out of it. I had watched as Alec and another vampire had stepped out of the car and walked towards our house. Because of the heavy rain, I hadn’t gotten a good glimpse of him but that would be fixed soon. He was in the house, somewhere downstairs, and my family was lying to him about how eagerly I wanted to meet him. Why did they have to lie? This situation was bad enough without lies, at least for me. I didn’t need Alec to think that I was an excited little girl who would happily run into his arms. No, I definitely wasn’t like that, I was the opposite and wouldn’t pretend to be anything else.

The rain didn’t pour so hard anymore when I heard a knock from the door of my room. I didn’t ask who it was or give them permission to come in because I knew who it would be. It was Alice who radiated excitement through the wide smile on her lips.

“Bella wants you to come downstairs”, she told me, her voice gentle. “Alec just arrived with Felix.”

“I saw them”, I said quietly, jumping down from the windowsill. “Is he… Does he seem like he wants to meet me?”

Alice came closer to me and set my hair free from the rubber band that had held my hair in a ponytail. “I won’t lie to you, Nessie, he seems cold. He didn’t say much but Felix seemed to be excited for him.” She played with my hair as she spoke, probably wondering if she should try to do something about it, but I pulled away from her and snatched the hair band back.

“But you lied to him, didn’t you? You told him I couldn’t wait to meet him, right?” I asked although I already knew the answer. Alice nodded, her smile had faded away. “This meeting is going to be the worst ever.”

“I don’t think so”, Alice said and tried to sound positive. “You’ll meet him and introduce yourself and then you’ll get to know each other little by little.”

Little by little. In our case, that would mean very slowly. I didn’t think Alec or I would be open-minded or open hearted right away. Our worlds were so different and we didn’t have anything in common. He was a vampire who drank human blood, I was a half-human, half-vampire who fed on animals and human food. We weren’t alike at all. Well, except he didn’t want this either, I was pretty sure of it.

“I’m sure he doesn’t want to get to know me”, I mumbled as I put my hair back on a ponytail, “although neither do I. But Alice, I don’t have to be alone with him, do I?”

Alice stood right in front of me and placed her hands on my shoulders, a gentle smile on her face. “No, you don’t. I can be present all the time if you want.”

I nodded and thanked her. She was the best Aunt I had and she was keeping the promise she had made earlier. She would be there for me although she had different thoughts about the wedding than I did. But it didn’t matter. I just needed someone to stand by my side, to support me, and no one could do better than Alice. Not even my mom, not right now because of the arrangement she had made without asking me.

Alice left my room shortly after our little conversation and encouraged me to come downstairs soon. When she had disappeared, I had sighed heavily and tried to empty my mind of every little thought that included the wedding. I shouldn’t care about that now, I should only care about staying alive through the stupid meeting which would be awkward. I felt it under my skin and in my stomach. It wouldn’t go well, I sensed it.

Despite the uneasy feelings, I left my room and followed in Alice’s invisible steps through the narrow hall. Seeing the staircase and hearing Alice’s bright voice let the others know that I was coming downstairs, made my head spin. On the fourth step, I almost stumbled and I had to stop for a moment to take a deep breath.

I don’t want this. I don’t want to do this.

But it was too late to back off now, I was sure everyone had heard me in the creaking stairs and now, they were waiting for me. I didn’t have any other choice but to show myself and meet my future husband. And I did so. I walked down the rest of the stairs, revealing myself to everybody and focusing my eyes on the red eyed vampire in the doorway.

Silence filled the house as we stood there, Alec and me studying each other with our gazes, the others looking curiously at us. It was as awkward as I had thought it would be, and I wanted to turn my eyes away from him but I didn’t. He had dark golden brown hair and his facial features were a tiny bit childish. The red eyes were like rubies, shiny and cold, and a shiver went down my spine as I met his look. In that moment, I truly knew nothing good would come out of our marriage. He was a hunter, a killer, and his gloomy eyes proved it. I turned my look away as my parents appeared on my sides. I couldn’t look at him anymore.

“Alec”, my mother said, “this is our daughter, Renesmee Cullen. And Renesmee”, she tried to meet my eyes but I kept avoiding hers, “this is Alec of the Volturi.”

She pushed me towards Alec as I kept watching the wooden floor. I didn’t know what to do now. I didn’t know what my family wanted me to do. Did they expect us to hug or say something to each other? Or maybe shake hands? I thought the speaking option was the best so I mumbled a quiet ‘hello’. Alec responded as quietly and the awkward, cold silence surrounded us again. No one spoke for a while and I felt like this moment lasted for ages.

“Do you two want to have some time alone or should we all go and sit in the living room?” I heard Grandma Esme ask. The silence was finally broken and I was happy of that. But I definitely wasn’t happy of what she had suggested.

“I think they should get some time alone”, Alice agreed, “so they don’t feel like we are pressuring them to talk.”

“But Alice-”, I started, feeling a little empty so suddenly. She had promised not to leave me alone with him!

“I didn’t mean completely alone”, Alice explained and fixed her words. “What do you say if we three go outside? You, Alec and me?”

Alec didn’t say anything and I didn’t get to open my mouth when Esme and my mom were already agreeing with Alice. I sighed and glanced at Alec who wasn’t looking at anyone. His gaze wandered around on the walls but suddenly, turned at me. I looked away, crossing my arms on my chest, and pretended not to be here.

But it was pointless. The cool wind and the tiny raindrops wiped and washed my pretending away.

 

_Alec’s PoV_

The day had been incredibly long, longer than I had thought it would be, but I was feeling a little relieved for the fact that it was ending. The sky had turned dark, and it was very dim everywhere around me. The only sounds I heard came from the trees surrounding me and I almost felt like I could forget the real reason I had come here. But almost wasn’t enough for me who kept wondering why I was still here.

As I ran in the dark woods, I kept on thinking that I could have left and traveled back to Italy. I knew I could still do it, disappear in the shadows of the night but I also knew it would be to no avail. When the Volturi had decided something, they didn’t cancel their plans if someone asked them to do so. Not even if the one asking was one of their high ranked guards.

I let out a gloomy, bitter laughter and stopped running, realizing I wasn’t far away from the Cullens’ house. I saw it through the branches of the trees, lights shining brightly against the blurry darkness. My sharp sight could see someone sit at a window, and I didn’t fail to recognize this person. It was her, my wife-to-be, who had brought me into this situation just with her existence. We should have destroyed her some years ago like we had intended to. If we had, I would still be beside my sister in Italy.

But we had decided to spare her because she wasn’t an immortal child like we had thought. She was a half-breed to whom I was forced to get married for the Volturi to benefit from her family. Aro would be delighted to have Alice and Edward and Bella in his use, I understood that, but he could have come up with a better idea that didn’t include me marrying the Cullen girl.

He should have chosen Felix to marry her, he had been so annoyingly cheerful and amused unlike me (I had been so close to making him blind). And to my big surprise, the girl had been as distant as me although I had thought she would be all smiles and happiness. No. She had been like a frightened prey in a predator’s eyes.

Turning my back at the house, I heard silent noises from behind me and felt the air move my cloak. It didn’t take me too long to realize who tried to accompany me in the silent hours of the night but I wasn’t quite happy of that. Although I much rather spent time with Felix than with any of the Cullens, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to listen to his never ending jokes about the marriage.

“I guessed you would be wandering around the woods.” His voice came from my left side, and I stopped walking, looking at Felix’s shadowy figure in the darkness. “Do you really think this wins your fiancées’ company? Walking alone in the forest?”

“At least this wins your poor and incredibly annoying jokes”, I muttered. “Why aren’t you with the Cullens anymore? You seemed to come along with them rather well.” He actually did, especially with Alice and Emmett.

“They needed their own privacy”, Felix answered, amusement in his voice, and I could feel what was coming next. “And I couldn’t let you escape into the night without me. Now, what do you think about your fiancée?” I could see a curious smile on his face as I sighed, sounding frustrated.

“Nothing.”

“Come on, Alec. Don’t you think she looked pretty?”

“She looked like someone had stolen her favorite teddy bear.”

“She’s beautiful in my opinion”, Felix stated as I started to walk again, he followed me.

“Why don’t you marry her then? You could take my place and we wouldn’t have any kind of problem anymore.” I wished we could switch places but knowing Aro, he wouldn’t let us do that. “I think she would like you since her family already welcomed you so well.”

Felix laughed. “I won’t ruin the joys of a marriage for you. In the end, you would only regret that.” I snarled at his words, wishing he would stop. “Fine, I won’t tease you anymore if you tell me what you thought of her.”

I hadn’t really thought much of her, seeing her had just changed the images I had had in my mind. I was thankful for the fact that she wasn’t a girl who eagerly waited for our wedding day but something in her quietness bugged me.

“She’s too quiet”, I simply answered and hoped he would stop talking about this.

“I think she thinks the same of you. You didn’t talk at all”, Felix noted. “Maybe she’s just shy. Or-”

“Shy or not, I really don’t care to talk about her or the wedding.” I turned to look at Felix with cold, jaded eyes. “Right now I don’t care about your companion either.”

Felix not following me anymore, I disappeared running into the silent forest, the wind being my only companion with my risen anger.


	5. Brother and Sister

 

Chapter 4

_Renesmee’s PoV_

The past two days had been awful. I had been forced to spend time with Alec who had arrived three days ago. We hadn’t talked on that day and we hadn’t talked later either although my family had tried to make us get to know each other. I was protesting by not saying a word to him and I reckoned he just didn’t want to talk to me at all. Felix was the one who talked to me instead of him but I hadn’t given him too much attention either. He seemed nice, though and reminded me a little bit of Uncle Emmett.

During the past days, I had also picked my wedding dress and chosen Alice to be my maid of honor. She had said that it had been no surprise although she couldn’t see my future or my decisions and I understood why she had expected me to pick her. She knew I needed her to be near me during the wedding ceremony and that I wouldn’t have chosen anyone else. She was really delighted of my decision.

But I wasn’t happy as I stared at the calendar hanging on the wall, opposite of my bed. August 8th had been marked with a big, red W, and the fact that tomorrow was August 8th made me feel like someone was strangling me with a thin wire. I almost felt like I couldn’t breathe properly, like my stomach was sick. I thought I had been preparing myself enough for the doom day but I was so wrong. Nothing could prepare me well enough anymore.

I let myself fall onto my back on my bed and heard knocking from the door. Thinking it was Alice, I said, “Come in”, and rolled onto my side. The door opened, creaking, and the familiar ruby eyes were the first thing I saw before realizing who it really was. It definitely wasn’t Alice. It was Alec in his cold and distant presence.

“Can I take that back?” I asked, referring to my earlier words and actually finally talking to him. “I thought you were Alice.”

Alec sat onto the couch against the wall beside my bed and watched me with slightly annoyed eyes. “Alice was the one who sent me here.”

I was quiet for a while, staring at the vampire’s quite expressionless face. His lips were pressed tightly together and I got the picture that he was sent here because of that usual reason. Everyone still tried to get us to know each other.

“Why?” I asked despite the fact I knew. Alec sighed.

“Why? She sent me here so that we could play house and pretend to be a little happy couple.”

His words were harsh and cold, full of disgust which also glowed in his gloomy eyes. I turned my look away from him and pursed my lips together. I had known that if we were ever to talk with full sentences, we wouldn’t be kind to each other. I was sure he was disgusted of me but so was I of him and the way he lived.

Our conversation ended there but he didn’t leave my room, neither did I. He just sat there on the couch as I lay on the bed, turning onto my back and staring at the ceiling. Why couldn’t this be just a long bad dream? Why couldn’t I already wake up and see the mark on the calendar disappear? Why couldn’t anyone disturb the horrible dream? I wanted it to end and Alec to disappear with Felix.

But this wasn’t just a dream and I knew it was foolish of me to even wish for that. This was as true as the love my parents felt for each other but not as pure, not at all. This was sick and twisted, a terrible mistake I could do nothing about. I just had to behave nicely and accept it. I wasn’t sure if I could do that, though.

“Can I ask you something?”

The voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I got up into a sitting position, looking at Alec who was eyeing me. He still had the quite blank expression on his face but his eyes were a tiny bit shiny of curiosity. I shrugged.

“What?”

“I know you were imprinted on”, he said, getting up from the couch and walking across the room. He stopped at the wide window covered with light green curtains and continued to talk, his back turned at me. “Why isn’t that shape-shifter trying to stop what’s happening here?”

He asked the question I had played in my mind a few times after I had been told about the wedding. I knew Jacob didn’t agree with my family about the agreement, he probably hated it and wanted them to break it off but he hadn’t been here to prove it to me. Grandpa Carlisle had only told me that Jacob had tried to talk to my parents when he had heard of this madness (before me!) but to no avail. He had then left without saying anything to anybody and I kind of understood why he had done that although a part of me felt like he had betrayed me. He was a very good friend of mine and I had expected him to talk my parents out of this if I asked but I hadn’t had the chance to do so. I hoped he knew that I didn’t want this at all.

“He tried”, I told Alec, “but no one listened to him. And he didn’t stay long enough to hear me ask his help.”

“Why doesn’t your family want you to marry him if he imprinted on you?”

“Because I don’t want to marry him.”

I spoke the truth to Alec who turned around with raised eyebrows. I had always thought Jacob as a friend and a brother, my feelings had never involved romantic ones, not even my thoughts. I had grown up thinking him as someone I could turn to if I felt bad, as someone who would take care of me anytime. And he did look after me, he kept me close and taught me things, loved me and I loved him back. But I didn’t love him like my mom loved my dad or Aunt Alice loved Uncle Jasper. I loved Jacob as a brother, he knew it and hadn’t tried to change the way of it. In my opinion, it would have ruined our relationship if he had tried.

“You don’t want to marry him?” Alec repeated and crossed his arms on his chest. His eyes had started to flame which I didn’t consider a good thing. “I bet you do now in this mad situation that we both hate.”

The words he spoke were poisoned with slight bitterness and annoyance and I could see why. If I’d just had some kind of feelings towards Jacob, we wouldn’t be in my room, talking about this. But this really wasn’t my fault, he couldn’t blame just me! What had he done to cancel the wedding? Obviously nothing because he was standing there, beside my bed.

“If you’re trying to find someone to accuse, you’re blaming the wrong person”, I snapped, sounding slightly annoyed. “Did you even try to break our engagement off?”

It was a stupid thing to ask, even to think of. Of course he had tried to break it off, he wanted to marry me as much as I did. But hearing him blame me of all of this made my lips press together and blood rush in my veins. If he didn’t want to be fair with me, I wouldn’t be with him either.

“You seriously need to ask if I tried to do something about Aro’s massively idiotic idea?” His face was suddenly as hard and cold as ice, his jaw tight and his voice tense. I felt my stomach tighten watching and hearing him speak. “I should be the one asking you that question. What have you possibly done to stop this?”

“I-”

“I don’t think sitting alone in your room and acting like a child is the best wa-”

“I’m not acting like a child!”

The words escaped my mouth quickly, cutting Alec off with their loudness and igniting anger. I felt like electricity was running through me, tiny waves of irritation rushed back and forth in my body and I wanted to throw something at him. My hands grabbed a pillow but I didn’t allow myself to toss it. He seemed to wait for it, though, his waiting and a little concentrated eyes gave him away.

“I’m not acting like one”, I repeated, my voice calmer.

Realizing that he was really trying to put the blame on me didn’t make me happy. He didn’t know how I had tried to talk with everyone! He didn’t know how many times I had told my family that I wouldn’t marry him. He had no idea how hard I had tried to make all of them realize that the agreement could separate me from them.

“And you don’t have any idea of what I’ve tried to do to cancel our wedding. I’ve tried to show my family how I feel about this, how I hate what they did behind my back but they have just gone on and on about the fact that we all will benefit of this. So don’t even try to tell me that I haven’t done anything!”

Alec looked at me, his face in a slightly surprised expression, and I was pretty sure he hadn’t waited for me to raise my voice or to stand up to myself. He had thought I would sit quietly on my bed and let him tell me what I had or hadn’t done. I couldn’t blame him for his expectations, though. I understood if he had got an impression that I was a silent and shy girl who wouldn’t speak her mind, I had been acting like one for the past two days but only because I hadn’t had anything to say to him. And to protest in a new way.

“Maybe you didn’t try hard enough”, Alec said quietly, his voice sounding thin and cold of slight wonder. He stepped closer to me and opened his mouth to add something but we were interrupted by a knock from the door. Alec took a few steps backwards and turned his back at me again as the door opened, revealing Alice.

“I hope I’m not interrupting you”, she said and sounded like she had no clue of our arguing but I knew better. The look she gave me had a hint of worry in it. “I have news for you, the Volturi arrived.”

“Great…”, I mumbled. The main audience of the miserable wedding was finally here. “Do we have to-”

“No”, Alice answered, guessing what I had wanted to ask. “You don’t have to meet them until tomorrow unless you want to. You can come downstairs with us.” She glanced at Alec who had turned around. “Jane asked to see her brother anyway.”

Jane, Alec’s twin sister. I had heard a lot about her and her violent power that was definitely an opposite of her brother’s. I remembered her coming here with the Volturi when they had intended to destroy me but I couldn’t build a picture of her in my mind. My mother had told me that she looked like an angel with her a little childish facial features and full lips but I betted she wasn’t one.

“No.” I shook my head. It was better to meet them all tomorrow, today I would just try to prepare myself for the worst. “No, I don’t want to come but…”, I thought my words for a second, “…tell Aro that I will gladly meet the ruiner of my life tomorrow.”

 

 

_Alec’s PoV_

I had been wrong, completely wrong again and I blamed it on Felix and his “She’s only shy!” talks.

Renesmee Cullen wasn’t as shy as we had thought she was, and I’d had the pleasure of realizing that. She had been entirely annoyed and even a little bit angered when I had assumed that she hadn’t done much to stop our wedding. I hadn’t waited for it, I hadn’t expected her to have courage to shout and cut my words off. To be honest, I hadn’t waited for her to do anything else but to sit on her bed with no intentions to talk. But she had decided to show me the real her that she had been hiding under the cover of a quiet, unsure girl.

Her sudden outburst had surprised me a little but more importantly, she had made me realize something I hadn’t really admitted to myself. The way she had stood up to herself and yelled at me because I had been accusing her of not trying to cancel our wedding, had made me think of what I had done when Aro had announced the news. I had only said that I didn’t want this and then I had remained as my master’s precious little servant who wouldn’t raise his hand against him.

The girl didn’t have to know that. It was better if she thought that I had tried my best to stop this, otherwise she would doubt my importance in our coven. She would wonder why hadn’t one of Aro’s most trusted guards tried to do something about the matter. She would never understand, I believed.

Besides, Jane breathing down my neck and Felix annoying me was enough for me. I didn’t need my wife-to-be demanding me to explain things to her.

I closed the door behind me as Alice and I stepped out of my fiancées room. She had interrupted our conversation which had actually been more like an argue, and told us that the Volturi had arrived. The girl had been so unhappy to hear that but I couldn’t say I was glad myself. It would be great to have other company than just Felix and the Cullens but I felt bitter towards my own coven. More likely towards my master, but they all had agreed with him when he had come up with the proposal. And everyone else knew about it before me but they didn’t do anything to change Aro’s mind. If I had known about it as early as they had, I would have figured out a way to avoid this.

I sneered quietly and shook my head. It was no use to ponder what could have happened if I had known earlier or if someone had been against Aro. Those opportunities never existed, my only option was to marry the girl and see what would happen after that. Somewhere in my mind I knew that ‘something good’ wasn’t one of the possibilities for the future.

When we came downstairs, Alice told me that Jane was waiting for me in the kitchen. I made my way there, seeing all the familiar vampires who had traveled from Italy to see me marry Renesmee Cullen. My eyes caught the three brothers talking with Carlisle, Demetri exchanging words with Felix and Heidi introducing herself to Rosalie Hale who looked as cold as before. In the kitchen, I saw Jane staring out of a narrow window, a black cloak covering her entire body. She didn’t turn around to see me although I knew she had heard me come.

“I was told that you wanted to see me.”

My voice broke the silence surrounding us, making Jane turn around. She looked mischievous in her own wicked way, her red eyes were bright and secretive but the smile playing on her lips was almost sweet, angelic. That was the Jane I had always known and seeing her like that made the corners of my mouth curl up into a pleased smile.

“Why wouldn’t I want to see my own brother?” she asked as I walked closer to her. “Volterra is boring without you there but I managed to find something to entertain me.”

That wasn’t a surprise to me, she could always find something or someone to keep her pleased. She seemed to be quite satisfied now, too, and I had to wonder why. She should have been displeased and disappointed, she was going to attend my wedding tomorrow after all.

“Why do you look like you have forgotten the reason you’re here?”

Jane tilted her head to the left and walked past me. “I haven’t and I certainly haven’t accepted any of this.” I followed her with my eyes, she stopped at the table between us and looked at me. “After you left with Felix, I went to talk to Aro and tried to make him realize that this was a very bad idea. He didn’t listen to me, just reminded me of my place.”

Her eyes grew cold as she spoke and I understood why. She had always been Aro’s favorite and I was sure that she hadn’t liked it when he had reminded her of her place in our coven. Aro had never needed to do that before, not with her. And knowing my sister, I was very sure that she was a little afraid of losing respect in our master’s eyes.

“I’m thankful for you, sister, but you must have known that Aro wouldn’t change his mind so easily”, I said almost sighing.

“No, I wouldn’t say that”, Jane disagreed. “At some point, he will realize that this wedding won’t bring anything good to us. It will only complicate things.”

“Did you tell him that?”

“Of course, but like I said, he didn’t listen.”

I didn’t tend to question my master but sometimes I wondered what went through his mind when he decided things. Did he try to find any holes in his plans? If he did, did he try to come up with answers to them or did he just decide to forget that certain problematic plan?

I could just guess but now I had to say that he hadn’t thought this arrangement through well at all and he would realize it sooner or later like Jane had said. He couldn’t have answers to every problem this marriage would cause. But he was our master and he knew best. I had to disagree with that now, though.

“How do you come along with the half-breed, brother?”

Jane walked back to me as she spoke, making a slight subject change, and I raised my eyebrows as she studied my face with her look. Did she really need to ask that?

“What do you think? We obviously love each other very much”, I said, wrapping my voice in pure, thick sarcasm. It made Jane narrow her eyes. “You don’t need me to answer that question. You know that I don’t want to have anything to do with her.”

“Neither do I and because of that…”

Her lips curved into that innocent smile and the secrecy came back to play in her eyes. Placing my hands on her shoulders, I felt curiousness wake up inside me and stare at her through my eyes. Jane tilted her head and leaned closer, whispering into my ear.

“We will figure a way out of this marriage and nothing, absolutely nothing can stop us.”


End file.
